American Airlines has done away with carry-on bag sizers at the gates, placing judgment in the hands of their gate agents.

According to a memo seen by View From The Wing, effective October 6, 2025, American Airlines will remove bag sizers at the gates, giving the agents full authority to determine if bags should be allowed as carry-on or gate checked.

Even though they urge gate agents to give the customer the benefit of the doubt, they still reminded them of the allowed bag dimensions and limitations. The memo even notes that items such as a crossbody/purse are not allowed as they are considered to be a third item if another personal item is being carried on board as well.

How to support this change:

  • In the lobby: One of the most effective ways to reduce gate-checks is by identifying oversized bags early — ideally in the lobby, before customers reach the gate. That’s why lobby bag sizers will remain in place, and we’re encouraging agents to proactively scan the area, identify oversized bags, guide customers to use the sizer and check bags when necessary.
    • Agents can help avoid delays by not sending oversized bags to the gate.
  • At the gate: Rather than relying on the bag sizer, gate agents may use their judgment to determine whether a bag is clearly oversized and needs to be checked.
    • If the bag appears slightly oversized, or if you’re not sure, err on the side of the customer.
    • If the bag is clearly oversized, it’s time to check it.
    • Our focus will remain on ensuring customers are within the travel allowance of only one carry-on bag and one personal item unless they have approved additional items (listed in Web Ref). Remember a crossbody/purse is a third item and should be consolidated before boarding.

What isn’t changing:

  • Carry-on bags should not exceed 45 linear inches.
  • Our carry-on bag policy (one carry-on bag, one personal item) remains the same. Any additional items (such as crossbody bags or purses) need to be consolidated to fit within the person’s carry-on or personal item.
  • Whether in the lobby or at the gate, use your judgment to identify clearly oversized bags while making allowances for minor overages, like small front pockets or wheels. Third items such as crossbody bags/purses must be consolidated before boarding.
  • Whether in the lobby or at the gate, use your judgment to identify clearly oversized bags while making allowances for minor overages, like small front pockets or wheels. Third items such as crossbody bags/purses must be consolidated before boarding.

Bag sizers will still be available at the check in counters, and from the verbiage, it seems American wants their check in agents to be more vigilant, looking out for any bags that may not fit their carry-on limits.

Is this change a good thing? The airline claims it wants to give agents more decision-making power, with the ability to reduce confrontation, but I suspect this won’t exactly go the way they hope it would.

This reminds me of those outdated tint laws where the policemen could use their discretion to say whether tint was too dark or not. It won’t be surprising if we see some Frontier-styled tangles at the American gates in the near future.